Since our brood has grown, it was also time to document this life-changing milestone in print. It was also timely to “upgrade” our family photo which sits in our living room, so baby Leroy gets to have his cute, tiny self in it too.

We were excited to go for our newborn portraiture session – okay, maybe I was more excited because I finally got to step out of the house albeit it was just 10 days into confinement!

Fast forward, and now, we have a little baby in our arms, and it’s simply a precious memory for the hubs and I.

Before the newborn photoshoot

From our experience with Orange Studios, one thing that stood out about them was how organised they were.

I like the fact that they would send an email with all the necessary information on what to expect during the newborn photoshoot, and if any preparations should be done.

It was also very reassuring to know that although the session was expected to take three to four hours, since the progress of the session depended on the baby’s mood (and perhaps, toddler’s mood too, with another child!), and seeing to the needs of the newborn (feeds, diaper changes, poops, pees and more!). These are entirely normal to occur during the session, and Orange Studios is equipped with facilities for new parents too. Check our previous article on how well-equipped their studio is to meet the needs of families!

Before the day of our newborn photoshoot, Ryan called me to run through the details and preparation arrangements so that we would be able to anticipate things.

The recommended time for a newborn photoshoot is when baby is 8-10 days old. Newborn photoshoots are done early in the morning, as that’s the best time for softer natural light, which is perfect for photoshoots.

Discussions involved the outfits for our family – preferably light colours (e.g. pastel) or neutral shades (e.g. black, grey) – to keep to a theme since we would be doing family shots together.

As our family wore white colour-coordinated outfits taken during the maternity photoshoot, Ryan suggested a continuation sort of idea, so we should prepare the same set that we had worn back then.

Would it be a boy or a girl? Gender surprise, it was! And a beautiful belly art which adorned my baby bump back then…

During the newborn photoshoot

In any situation, preparations are half the battle won. Everything else was left to fate. Haha!

The session was intended to start with a round of sibling shots, but dear Vera got up on the wrong side of bed and wasn’t in the best of moods. The Orange Studios team quickly suggested doing Leroy’s solo shots first since he had just been fed, and was sleeping. This would make it easier for him to be in certain positions which required him to “pose”.

Was Leroy stealing a peek? :P

Both Ryan and Wini sprang into action to get the props in place, brought out the Baby Shusher (this is really important to have when it comes to newborn photoshoots! White noise, FTW!) and helped undress Leroy before putting him into position.

Expectedly, it can be tricky to get the baby into the desired poses, but Ryan and Wini were patiently shifting and moving him. Even carrying him to calm him down at some points!

Ryan was not just that pair of eyes behind those lenses, but was also hands-on when it came to getting his subjects into the right mood… in this case… adding baby care onto his list of must-do’s during the newborn photoshoot!

Getting the little model into position…

That Baby Shusher (or an app with white noise) is a common special tool which photography studios specialising in newborn photoshoots would have.

After Leroy was settled, he presented us with quite a few surprises – poop and pee! And the Orange Studios team deftly grabbed wet wipes, tissue, moved the little one and replaced the soiled fabrics. It was pretty much a sight since everything happened so quickly!

This actually happened several times during our session, and I was feeling so embarrassed for the mess – thank you for being understanding, Ryan and Wini!

Hee… sorry about the poop and pee!

Apart from our little star of the day, our young lady was really moody and cranky, and let’s just say, it was very tricky trying to get a proper sibling shot (which I was actually looking forward to very much), but it was understandable since the situation did not allow it. But hey, we still managed to get at one proper final picture with the two kids! :)

Little Vera giving baby brother a gentle loving pat :)

For our family picture, the little boy was pretty cooperative since he was well-fed and rather sleepy. Save for the fact that he peed on me twice as he was butt naked!

The challenging part for the Orange Studios team to tackle? Getting V to smile for the camera! So how did they coax a smile out of a moody girl?

Someone just wasn’t her usual cheerful self that day… so what did the team at Orange Studios do to cajole a smile?

Wini went all out to tease her with a toy bunny that they had, flashing megawatt smiles at V with one hand holding the toy bunny, and moving back and forth towards V to “play” with her. And the result? Well, I’m sure the shot speaks for itself!

What a bright and beautiful smile, wasn’t it? :D

Big thank you to Wini, for her patience, and Ryan for his quick shutter fingers! :D

As the conditions weren’t the most favourable, the newborn photography session overran, and we felt really bad for taking up so much time. But Ryan and Wini were ever so patient despite having the session go past lunch time. Right till the last minute, they were gingerly and carefully placing Leroy in different positions with various props, all in a bid to capture as many solo shots of him from a variety of angles too.

Well, we ended up having lunch at the studio.

Can I let you in on a secret accidental discovery?

The Roasted Meat from the canteen within the building was one of the best I’ve had! I’m no fan of greasy pork, but this was not at all oily yet crispy and fragrant! :P

Post-photoshoot arrangements

After our newborn photography session ended (phew!), we caught up with Ryan and Wini to find out about the arrangements thereafter.

“Spot my tongue sticking out!”

Our pictures were ready for viewing in a few days, and after selection, they were touched up to prepare for print. We sat down in the room (the same cosy room we used to nurse Leroy) to view the snapshots and took our pick of our favourite photograph to convert it into a canvas picture.

In general, lead time may take from 2 – 4 weeks, depending on the choice of product(s) ordered, as they have varying sizes of wall art (e.g. canvas portraits) and albums (e.g. coffee table books).

We were excited to view our pictures as we were eagerly looking forward to our family photos. And, TA-DAH! Here’s our spanking new family portrait canvas with our party of four :)

Home sweet home <3

In fact, the folks at Orange Studios understand that parents would usually want their newborn photographs ready in time for their baby’s full month party. Hence, they actually helped to expedite the touching up of photographs as well as the canvas printing. All in good faith, and we really appreciated that, as we managed to put up our new family portrait along with the dessert table during Leroy’s full month party. And now, the new canvas adorns our living room :)

Our new family portrait adorned the simple dessert table we had for baby Leroy’s full month party.

Our little family is thankful to the uber patient and dedicated team at Orange Studios for being a part of our family’s important milestones! This beautiful family portrait adds a special touch in our home and in our hearts :)